Samsung to spend as much as $14 billion on marketing this year

Samsung is expected to spend as much as $14 billion on marketing this year, Reuters is reporting. The Korean giant’s products continue to outsell rivals that sometimes get better product reviews but can’t compete in marketing efforts. This in turn makes Sammy’s ad budget three times larger than the one spent in 2012.

However, despite the massive outlay, there is increasing doubt as to whether the company is spending the money as efficiently as it could. According to Oh Jung-suk, associate professor at the business school of Seoul National University, Samsung is failing to efficiently bridge the gap between the aspiration and how consumers actually respond to the campaign. “It’s got to be more aligned,” he said.

Samsung’s marketing budget comes in at around 5.4% of its total revenues. In comparison, Samsung’s archrival Apple spent just 0.6% of its revenues on marketing.

Going forward, Samsung will continue to leverage its brand power to “maintain growth momentum,” while focusing on “optimizing the efficiency” of its marketing activities…